RUGBY’S Mark Cossar is in a serious but stable condition in hospital following a horrific crash at the British Masters in Dorset.
The decorated grasstrack driver was attempting to rewrite the sport’s record books in pursuit of an eighth title.
In wet and dangerous conditions Cossar’s 1,000cc bike lifted violently, sending him over the handlebars, with an oncoming wave of riders unable to take evasive action.
The 38-year-old is currently in Poole Hospital, after sustaining a broken shoulder, broken collarbone, three broken ribs and four badly broken vertebrae in his lower back.
Cossar requires a specialist operation which cannot take place at Poole Hospital.
He is awaiting a delicate transfer, possibly by air, to either University Hospital (Walsgrave) Coventry or Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.
Sidecar grasstrack’s most successful ever rider, Cossar adopts a fearless approach on the track in a notoriously dangerous no-brakes sport.
However, even before his alarming crash, he had said that he didn’t really want to race on what proved to be a lethal circuit.
As with all riders, and a big crowd in attendance, he did not want to let people down, with after the Masters already postponed the previous week.
Miraculously, Cossar’s passenger Carl Blyth somehow escaped without having to go to hospital. He did nonetheless leave the incident battered and bruised.
Both Mark Cossar and his younger brother Tom won their opening two heats, with things shaping up for a grand finale, but in his third and disastrous outing, Mark had worked his way up on the outside from the start, cutting back on the inside to take the lead, only to hit a big rut on the bend.
Mark is self-employed and a crowdfunding page has been set up to support him as he faces a lengthy lay-off.
To donate visit: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/diane-blyth
